3rd and Final Treatment for Sun-damaged Scalp and Face - Jasper, GA

For several years I had several crusty sun damage lesions (actinic keratoses) on my scalp and forehead. I kept putting off going to the Dermatologist because of previous bad experiences. I went with my wife to a Dermatologist she was using for treatment of a rash and found that I like the personnel there. I scheduled an appointment for the initial exam. After confirming these were all pre-cancerous lesions the treatment options were explained. I liked the information I was given about Blu-U treatment and chose that treatment. My first treatment was in March on my scalp, second treatment in April on my face, and my third treatment was another scalp treatment. With each treatment the cream (Levulan Kerastick) was applied to the site to be treated and I was then re-seated in the waiting room for an hour and half for it to activate. After that wait the treatment site was exposed to the Blu light for 17 minutes. On my first treatment to the scalp the pain was very intense for 7 minutes and then it leveled off to a tolerable level for the final 10 minutes. As I left the Dr.'s office there was a mild burning sensation which continued for several hours. When I woke the next day the burning sensation had pretty much disappeared. On my second treatment, for my face, the pain was less intense than I experienced with my first scalp treatment throughout the treatment. Once at home the burning sensation was completely gone after about 3 hours. On my third treatment, the second scalp treatment, there was virtually no burning sensation at any time during the treatment. Just an occasional hot tingle. I had read all the instructions for what to do following treatment and I took it as gospel. My wife drove me to the treatments so I could completely cover my head and face on the way home to avoid sunlight exposure. Prior to treatment I darkened our family room by covering the windows and this is where I stayed during the day for the first two days, with no bright lights on and no trips outside the house. Each of my treatments were done on Monday and by Saturday my skin was completely clear. I believe avoiding sunlight and bright light for 48 hours following treatments has been the reason my healing went so well and I had no complications. I see that a lot of patients in these reviews talk about how painful this procedure is. Based upon my experience I would say the pain is directly related to how much damaged skin surface you personally have. My scalp was by far the most damaged, and that first scalp treatment was very painful. My face had far fewer spots and as noted above the pain was tolerable. My second scalp treatment was just for 2 or 3 spots that did not completely clear after the first treatment and as noted there was virtually no pain. Even if you find the treatment pain intense I think most people can tolerate a few minutes of pain. Don't let that scare you away from this treatment. I very highly recommend Blu-U treatment with Levulan Kerastick. For those on Medicare, my experience has been that Medicare pays about 85% of the total cost of this procedure.